Basket cover and similar structure



-'8,' A. H. SCHMIDTKE 2,063,759

' BASKET COVER AND SIMILAR STRUCTURE Filed April 9, 1934 Patented Dec. 8, 1936 BASKET COVER AND SIMILAR STRUCTURE Albert H. Schmidtke, St. Joseph, Mich., assignor to St. Joseph Iron Works, St. Joseph, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application April 9, 1934, Serial No. 719,667

'7 Claims.

My invention relates to structures such as bushel basket covers wherein thin materials are secured to a marginal hoop, and has reference more particularly to the manner of fastening the thin material to the hoop and also the type of hoop that may be employed therewith.

It is the prevailing practice in using bushel baskets and similar containers for shipping products, to pack the basket or container heaping full and force the cover down over the heaping contents so as to provide what is known as a bulge pack, the basket cover being held in place by fastening same at suitable intervals therearound to the rim of the basket. Such covers are usually made of thin panels or slats of wood secured to the top of a marginal hoop by staples which are: driven downwardly through the thin cover material into the hoop and this not only necessitates the use of rather substantial hoop stock to receive and hold the staples, but even then the staples frequently pull loose on account of the strain and pressure imposed on the cover panels or slots by reason of the bulge pack.

The principal objects of my invention are to provide an improved fastening for securing thin cover material to a marginal hoop; to insure a connection which will not pull loose; to reinforce and strengthen and permit use of lighter stock for the hoop;' to permit employment of laminated hoops; to eliminate the usual lapping or separate connection of-the ends of the hoop stock; and in general to provide a stronger and cheaper structure for basket covers and the like than has been available heretofore,--these and other objects being accomplished with the construction shown in the accompanying drawing in which Fig. l is a top view of a basket cover constructed in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is a bottom view of the cover with a portion broken away at one side;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary outside view of the hoop showing the joint of the outer strip;

Fig. 5 is a similar view from the inside showing the joint of the inner strip;

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing a one piece hoop; and

Fig. '7 is a bottom view of the joint of the one piece hoop structure.

The cover shown in the accompanying drawing is of a type commonly used with bushel baskets and comprises a plurality of crossed panels I of thin material which are secured at their ends to the upper edge of a hoop 2, a top slat 3' also being employed which has the ends project ling outwardly beyond'the hoop 2 for engagement with the basket handles in the usual manner for holding the cover in place on the basket, said slat 3 being preferably secured to the panels I and these panels being held together by the staples 4 which engage therethrough and areclinched against the under side of the lowermost panel. For securing the panels I and slat 3 to the hoop 2, staple like fasteners 5 are employed which are engaged through the panels and slat at the inner side of the hoopZ so that the legs 6 of these fasteners extend downwardly along the inner face of the hoop as shown in Fig. 3,

and the lower ends of these legs-are bent out-- wardly and clamped against the lower edgeof the hoop 2 as shown at 1 so as to hold the panels I and slat 3 firmly against the upper edge of the hoop 2 while the extremities of the legs 6' are bent upwardly at the outer side of the' hoop 2 and clinched thereagainst as shown at 8.

Any desired form of hoop may be employed, as for example a pre-formed lapped and stapled hoop similar to those commonly used in making basket covers, but we prefer a two-ply construetion such as shown in Figs. 1 to 5 in which the hoop, which is indicated as a whole at 2, com"- prises inner and outer bands 9 and Ill respectively which are clamped together in the form of a laminated hoop between the legs 6 of the fast-' eners 5 and the upturned ends 8 thereof, the ends of these bands being butted together," preferably at diametrically opposite sides of the cover as indicated at 9 and Ill respectively, and the ends of each band being preferably stapled to the other band as indicated at H. Obviously the ends ofthe imier band 9 will be held in place by and fit within the outer band [0 and to insure holding of the ends of the other band Ill firmly against the inner band 9 a fastener 5 is preferably located in straddling relation at the joint 9 so that one of the ends of the band I0 is clamped against the band 9 by the clinched outer end 8 of one of the fastener legs and the other end of said band I0 is likewise clamped against the band 9 by the clinched outer end 8 of the other leg of the fastener.

Another form of hoop that may be used advantageously is shown in Figs. 6 and 7 and comprises a single strip of material [2, the ends of which are held in the abutting end to end relation as indicated at l2 by a fastener 5 which C: straddles the joint and has the legs thereof engaged respectively with the ends of the hoop l2 as shown in Fig. 7, it being understood that there are other fasteners 5 at intervals around the hoop l2 which serve in the same manner as in the structure of Figs. 1 to 5 to secure cover panels I and slat 3 to said hoop and to hold the hoop l2 in the circular form.

With this construction it is not necessary to use as substantial hoop stock inasmuch as there not only are no staples driven into the hoop as in previous structures, but the hoop is also strengthened by the present fasteners which through their clamping arrangement reinforce the hoop at close intervals and permit a laminated hoop arrangement to be used to advantage. Moreover, the fasteners 5 engage through the panels I at a greater distance from the panel ends than the staples which in previous structures were driven into the hoop and this together with .the .locking of the fastener legs under the lower edge of the hoop insures a panel and hoop connection that will safely withstand any separating strains to which the cover may be subjected in use.

While I have for the purpose of illustration shown and described my invention in connection with a particular type of basket cover, it is not intended'to be limited thereto, but may be used with other, types of covers as well as in any other structure, as for example certain types of basket bottoms, wherein thin material is secured to a marginal strip or band, and it is to be understood therefore that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the principles of the invention, the scope of which is to be determined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a structure of the class described the combination of a fiat element of thin material having a reinforcing strip along the edge thereof, and fasteners at intervals along the strip and securing said strip to the flat element, each of said fasteners comprising a length of wire the middle portion of which is engaged over the fiat element and has legs integral therewith and depending therefrom .at the inner side of the reinforcing strip and said legs having out-turned lower end portions engaged with the bottom portion of the strip and the outer extremities of said lower end portions being bent up against the outer side of the strip.

2. In a structure of the class described the combination of a circular mat of thin material, a marginal hoop having one edge thereof overlapped by the edge portion of said mat, and fasteners anchored to the mat at intervals along the hoop and engaged under the other edge of the hoop, said hoop having the ends thereof engaged and held in endwise abutting relation by one of said fasteners.

3. In a structure of the class described the combination of a circular mat of thin material, a marginal hoop having one edge thereof overlapped by the edge portion of said mat, and fasteners extending between and directly connecting the mat and the bottom of the hoop'at the inner side of the hoop for securing the mat to the hoop, said hoop comprising inner and outer laminations which are secured together in concentric relation by said fasteners.

4. In a basket cover or the like the combination of a circular mat of crossed wooden panels, a marginal hoop having the ends of the panels extended onto the upper edge thereof, a plurality of fasteners arranged at intervals around the hoop at the inner side thereof with their middle portions extended over and across the grain of the panels, said fasteners having hook like lower ends engaged under the lower edge of the hoop with the extremities of said hook like lower ends turned up and clamped against the outer face of the hoop.

5. In a structure of the class described, the combination of a circular mat of thin material with a marginal reinforcing hoop under the edge thereof, and spaced staple like fasteners engaged downwardly through the mat and having depending legs at the inner side of the hoop and said legs having their lower ends bent outwardly under the lower edge of the hoop and upwardly against the outer face of the hoop.

6. In a structure of the class described, the combination of a flat element of thin material with a reinforcing strip extending along the edge thereof, and fasteners by which the strip is secured to the flat element, said fasteners having portions at the inner side of the strip which extend directly between and connect the flat element to a remote part of the strip, said fastener portions having outwardly extending anchoring means engaged with said remote part of the strip and said fastener portions having other anchoring means extending over the flat element and presented sidewise toward the adjacent edge thereof.

7. In a structure of the class described, the combination of a circular mat of thin material, a marginal hoop having one edge thereof overlapped by the marginal portion of the'mat, and fasteners at the inner side of the hoop which extend directly between and connect the mat to the bottom of the hoop, said fasteners having anchoring means extended outwardly under the hoop and having other anchoring means engaged over the top of the mat and extending substantially circumferentially along the edge thereof.

ALBERT H. SCI-IMIDTKE. 

